Sunday, January 25, 2009

This weekend has had to have been one of the roughest weekends on records for us. So far. There had been discussion with Bryce's team on whether or not they were going to participate in a fundraising tournament through another elementary school this weekend. The tournament was originally scheduled to run through Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Unfortunately, the county had to change their tournament plans for the entire little league program and decided to hold games starting today as well. Bryce's coach had already said that if the fundraising tournament was to run through Sunday, they would not be participating because of conflicting games (younger siblings that were to play today) and his personal interest of going to watch tournament games. He was to call and let us know. He didn't. He announced to the kids at practice on Friday afternoon that they had added a second game for that tournament at 2 on Saturday. I suspected more.

Saturday morning, my neighbor was nice enough to drop Bryce and I off at the school (Hubby had taken Brady and Belle to his game thirty minutes away) prior to his game. The coach's wife came in and she I were talking about the day since she knew I had three kids playing and her daughter's team had a game scheduled that morning. She mentioned that in addition to the games they had at 11 and 2 they also had one at 4. So now things are getting a little hectic. Brady had a game at 10 and a 3 at two different schools, Belle had a game at 4 immediately following Brady's at their school and Bryce was playing 15 minutes away. So I dropped Hubby and Bryce off for his game at 1:30 and headed to their school to watch the game before his. While Brady was on the floor, I got a message from Hubby letting me know that if Bryce's team won their games they would be playing again at 7 and maybe later. And they did. So I got Hubby, Bryce and a teammate after the 4:00 games ended for a quick dinner.

At just after six, Bryce, his teammate, Belle and I headed back to the school for the next game. This made Bryce's 4th game for yesterday. The first thing I noticed when I walked into the gym was the temperature. It was suffocating in there! So hot that I couldn't believe the kids could play without getting over-heated. When we got there, another one of our school's teams were playing a team that had a few boys Bryce knew from a previous life when he attended that school. His schoolmates lost their game and would be playing against the team who lost Bryce's game. Bryce's team won and went on to play his friends from his former school. This is where things went bad.

By this point the teams were tired. Kids were cranky. Parents were cranky. Everyone was stuffy because of the amount of heat in the room. They gave a twenty minute break between the last two games for parents to get up, stretch their legs, kids time to warm up and so on. When the game got started, it was pretty uneventful. Our team was slow on the go because it was their 5th game of the day. They were exhausted. After a few minutes, they warmed up and really got on the ball. Then the fouls started coming in from both teams. Then boys started getting hurt. One boy from the other team got hurt and ended up on the floor and his mother was understandably upset. I can't tell you what happened because honestly I missed the play that landed the kid on the floor, but I didn't miss the mother start to harass the referees to the point that she was even flipping them off. Now not condoning her actions, but I understand how hard it is to not get upset when the kids are playing football on the court and referees don't call a single foul against the players. It is especially bad with the actual league games. The referees for the tournament games were on a voluntary basis, and actually called a better game than the ones who are paid to ref the regular games. But this is a sport. And kids are going to get hurt, including my own (who have gotten hurt). This mother took it a little too far. She started making comments to other parents on our team, including "when it is your kid," which of course got reactions of "it just was my kid!" It got to the point that she was defending herself from parents on her own team. Ones that felt she had said more than enough and needed to calm down. It was at this point the "lead" referee came around and announced to all parents and coaches that from then on, the game would be called on everything. If they had to finish the tournament one on one they would do so. And they did. They were calling things that the weren't normally called on a weekend game such as lane violations (against the other team). Now on to round two.

Bryce is usually the kid who takes the ball out of bounds when he is playing. After the ball went out of play, Bryce was making his way to the back of the court so that he could throw the ball in and he placed his hand on the back of one the players on the other team. He didn't push him. He didn't taunt him. He simply laid his hand there so the kid didn't step back on him as he walked by. And the kid threw an elbow. So my kid threw one back. Neither elbow did any damage short of removing the offending parties hand/arm from themselves. A short time later, Bryce's coach pulled him out and while the referees were discussing yet another incident, I had Belle walk around the court and tell Bryce to control his temper. I saw the elbow fly and while Hubby tells him to finish it when someone else starts it, I have told him before, there is no place on the court for tempers. Bryce was down while he was sitting there and she asked him what his problem was. He explained one of the mothers from the other team made the remark "Number so and so blue is acting like sh**." Number so and so was my kid and I had missed the remark. I was livid. My kid had no right throwing the elbow I will be the first to admit but he didn't throw it first, the other teams player did. Regardless of what was said and done on that court, no parent had any right to single out a player like that and say what she did. She has no consideration for the kind of damage she can do to the ego of a child by making remarks like that, especially within earshot of the child. Bryce is a very tender hearted child and he was devastated by the remark. He spent the rest of the game upset because of it. All because a mother couldn't act like a mother but had to act like one of the children on the floor. This is the point that I hate about sports. The part where the parents can't act their age and take their childishness out on the child of another team. My blood still boils at the thought of it.

Friday, January 23, 2009

I've always said that Belle was more observant than I ever was when it comes to clothing, something she gets from Hubby's side of the family. Tonight, she proved me right, yet again. We were browsing through the mall when a trio of girls walked past us. Of course, being in the mall, they were wearing slinky little dresses that had no straps or spaghetti straps and just enough fabric to come above the knee in bold colors. After they had passed us and were no longer in sight, Belle says, "Those shoes didn't go with that dress."

I just looked at her. I saw the dresses. I noticed that one girl had pink undertones in her hair. I never even looked past the dress as I'm guessing the sheer length of it caused me to go into convulsions. A short time later, we past the trio again. Two of the girls decided to wear their dresses with low top Chucks. And slinky dresses. Trying for a new look, they were. And Belle was having no part of it! Neither was I.

We stopped by Sears and picked up a top for each of the kids. Belle is in love with Bobby Jack clothing and the more attitude the saying has, the more she likes it. She does not get that from me. Ahem. She finally settled on an orange hoodie that says "Don't burst my bubble." Bryce picked up a grey and black striped hoodie and Brady picked up a black top that zips. New clothes is always exciting for kids!

On the way home tonight, the radio was running as usual. I cannot be in a vehicle without some sort of musical entertainment. I found a great song and a few seconds later, Hubby and I heard Brady singing along quietly. This is the first time we've caught him. We've caught Bryce and Belle before. It was fun while it lasted.

I'm off to load the washer and dryer so that everyone has their appropriate basketball attire tomorrow. So far, we are up to five games. Bryce is playing in a tourney that was questionable because of other situations. His coach was supposed to call and let parents know if he was going to participate. He didn't. I found out this afternoon that our four game Saturday and five game weekend has now been changed to an at least five game Saturday and six game weekend. We'll see what else tomorrow brings.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Not too long ago, I was supposed to go pick up Hubby at his truck. I knew he was on his way home the night before, and I warned him that we were scheduled for ice. When he called and let me know he was in, he warned me it was slick, that he had drove into the ice a couple of hours before. When I stepped outside, my heart jumped to my throat. There was ice everywhere. I eked down my driveway and eased to a stop at the end of my street. I crept out onto the main highway and started up the hill but when I hit my accelerator, I spun. So I drove up the hill at 10 miles an hour. Less than a quarter of a mile down the street, a truck had hit another car and a concrete block "house" where garbage cans were kept. I was easing my way down the hill when I found another SUV had spun off the road into a yard. So I did the only thing I knew to do. I called Dad. And I called Hubby and told him Dad was coming and I was going home. Then I pulled off onto a side road (that connected to mine) and drove home at a whopping 10 miles an hour. I was terrified and didn't relax until I knew that both Hubby and Dad were safely home. The ice melted a few hours later.

Tuesday, I had to take Belle to the dentist. When I got up, the area had been dusted with snow but the roads were drivable. The buses were running and they went to school like normal. I left just before 9 to get Belle from school. The main highways could be cleared by the draft of a large vehicle. Back roads were starting to get a little slick. I drove to the bank and slipped up the hill into the parking lot. I eased out onto the main road and stopped for gas. My tires spun even though I eased out of the parking lot to get moving. I took the parkway (for those that know the area) to the town where the dentist is located. And I cringed the minute I pulled onto the ramp. It was covered the entire length down. So I coasted and eased onto the highway. Now the highway itself honestly wasn't bad. There had been plenty of big trucks roll through that kept the snow pretty clear in the right hand lane. So I drove 20 miles to the exit I needed and eased onto the off ramp. The rest of the drive to the office was uneventful as I eased onto a back road for a block and into the parking lot. An hour and a half later, the roads were clear as if they had never been covered with snow to start with. And I breathed a sigh of relief and drove back to town. Normally.

Belle's dentist appointment. I can't say it went well because we went in for a cavity that was bothering her. She did a wonderful job. The tooth with the cavity is a baby tooth. X-ray showed that the permanent tooth is coming up underneath the baby tooth and it won't be long before the tooth would be ready to come out. Then the dentist mentioned that the baby tooth had a root on it that probably would not fall off on it's own and chances are they would eventually pull it. So we had the option of pulling the tooth or fixing it. Belle opted to fix it. So they did. She later admitted to Hubby that she was afraid she'd scream when they pulled it because it wasn't loose yet and wasn't ready to come out. She's feeling better now that her tooth has been fixed and the swelling has gone down. Maybe she'll stop sneaking food at bedtime.

Hubby got to come home today for a few hours. He was in Missouri (couple hours away) and had to be in Tennessee tonight which left him time to stop at home in between states. We filed our taxes (without the kids, huge accomplishment), went for lunch, and bought some dog food. The kids got to see him after school and he got Brady from basketball practice. We took him back to his truck this evening and he should hopefully be home tomorrow.

Sorry for the ramblings tonight. I just explained to Hubby it seems like things are going in to my head and coming back out jumbled. Is everything here coherent?

Monday, January 19, 2009

Thursday, Belle stayed home sick from school. She got up with a nasty headache and later complained about an ear ache. So I took her to her pediatrician to rule out an ear infection. She received a diagnosis of upper respiratory infection and was put on antibiotics but no ear infection! She felt better and returned to school on Friday.

Friday was Freaky Friday for the kids strings department. The advanced strings students could have someone come in and take their place for a lesson on their instrument while the kids watched Freaky Friday in another room. I spent an hour and a half learning how to play Mary Had a Little Lamb, Hot Cross Buns and "Cold" Cross Buns. I have to admit, it was not as difficult as I expected it to be, once I learned exactly how to hold the bow. Bryce loved that it was he and I for supper of pizza at the school. He had fun sitting through the concert performed by the parents. Brady and Belle enjoyed time with Hubby as he cared for them (on a couple of hours sleep) while Bryce and I were gone.

Nothing can wear a person out more than having to sit through six different basketball games for your children in one day. Except maybe actually playing in those games. But I didn't just sit through six basketball games. I had to watch three extra games in between games so that my child would be at their game on time. Brady won both of his games and had to have a chat (from me) about controlling his temper during a game. Another player come running up behind him and hit him in the back just after he put up a shot and Brady shot him a wonderful look. Bryce lost his game by one. lousy. point. They played a good game and were so disappointed to lose at the very last minute. It all came down to fouls. If they could've controlled their fouls, they would've dominated the game. Belle won two out of three games. I was so excited to see the last game she played on Saturday. She has really improved on her defense this year. One of the girls on her team came down with the flu this weekend so she was unable to make it to any game. This left Belle with only five players so they didn't have a single sub. These girls played through injuries, exhaustion, and frustrations. The last game, Belle's coach had her guard the point guard the entire game. And she did great! She kept up with this girl, step for step throughout most of the game.

Yesterday was a day for football. We tuned in at noon for the Arizona-Philadelphia game and then watched/listened to the Pittsburgh-Ravens game. Hubby had to leave during the last game and we had to catch part of it on the radio. I was stunned to see Arizona going to the Superbowl. I shall be rooting for the Steelers this year, as I'm not a big Cardinal fan. Can't wait for that game!

Today the kids were out for the holiday. Belle spent last night at our neighbors house with her friend. About 5:30 this morning, I sat straight up in bed. I just knew that someone had just banged on the side of my house. So I sat there listening, peeked out the blinds in my backyard and then got up to look out my living room windows. Nothing. So I went back to bed. A couple of minutes later, I heard the noise again. This time I was awake enough to realize that it was Cheech scratching in his bed. Hubby loved hearing that story. Not long after, Brady got up complaining about a bad dream and Bryce followed shortly after that to put the dogs outside. I dozed off for another half hour before I gave up sleep to the sound of the dogs running up and down the hallway. I finished watching a movie, made a dentist appointment for Belle, and got up. Bryce has been walking around the last couple of weeks saying that he wants to be my sous chef. Today, he helped me make a batch of cookies. He got the egg out of the fridge and dropped it. Then cleaned up the mess without argument. Next he wanted to put flour into the measuring cup. And spilled into my utensils drawer. He cleaned it up without being told including sweeping the floor. The he helped me roll the cookies out and put them in the oven. And throughout every little mishap, every little spill, it rolled off of me and didn't affect me in the least. The fact he cleaned up without being told was a plus. Then he spent the rest of the day insisting that I find kid friendly recipes online so that he could help me make supper. Ahem.

Tonight for supper I cooked. We had popcorn chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, baked beans, and biscuits. While I was mashing the potatoes, I sat the bowl down in a chair so I didn't have to hold it. The cord to the mixer then knocked off a big bowl of flour that I use to bread my chicken. It honestly looked as though snow had drifted across part of my kitchen. Then I cleaned up my mess.

The kids are now in bed. Belle lost a tooth this morning and is waiting for the tooth fairy to make her appearance. She has to be at the dentist office at 10 for a toothache/cavity. We'll see what happens. For now, I'm going to watch Brothers and Sisters that I missed last because I was watching football. How was your weekend?

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

A week or so ago Janjanmom at All in a Day's Work stumbled across my little world and became a regular visitor and commenter. So I stopped by her blog and I'm hooked (and a little in awe because she homeschools)! She was "interviewed" earlier in the week and offered to interview volunteers. So I volunteered! She put up her questions tonight and now it's time for me to answer them.

1. Which one of your pets is your favorite and why?Naming off a favorite pet is almost like picking a favorite child. But not as bad because you can't do psychological damage to the pet. Hubby and I each have our own pets. Zeus, Callie and Sophie are mine. Cheech and Gracie are his. I have to say that Zeus is my favorite partly because I favor cats to dogs but also because I bottle fed him for six weeks. That makes him my baby almost as much as my children.

2. What is the most frustrating thing about your kids playing sports? Having to be at three different schools at the same time or relatively close. How do you decide which child to go see and which child you have to sacrifice? Belle made it easy the first time we had to do it because she volunteered. The last time, we let Memaw and Pepaw take Bryce because he had already played one game and it let us watch the other two. This week Belle has to be at one school at 10:20, Brady at another school by 11:30 and Bryce back at the first school by 12:40. The schools are 30 minutes apart. Then Brady plays again a third school at 4 and Belle plays two more games at a fourth school at 4:30 and 6:10. I'm still working out those details and probably will be until Friday night, when I know for sure if Hubby is going to be home or not.

3. Do you plan to have more children? As much as I would've loved to have more, we are finished. Hubby took steps to ensure I wouldn't talk him into a fourth child the same way I talked my way into the third...

So I adopt pets instead hehehe....

4. What is the best thing about raising a family in Smalltown, KY? This one took some thought. Hubby hates this small town and would do anything to move us from here (the fact we have a mortgage helps keep him grounded). I think knowing that if I ever need help with the kids, there are plenty of people that I could call and not worry because they are people Hubby and I grew up with, worked with, etc and now their kids are friends with our kids. Every babysitter the kids have had have been friends of ours that we knew from school or from work. Works out great.

5. What is the worst thing about raising a family in Smalltown, KY? Fewer resources. My nieces and nephews are in schools in/near a city northish of here and they have the opportunities to participate in a wider variety of extra-curricular activities than what is around here. Instead of basketball, my nephews are wrestling. There is a bigger variety of things to do to keep the kids occupied.

This was fun! They were things I never would've thought to blog about. Thanks jan!

So my solution didn't work. Actually it wasn't the solution that was the problem. It was the problem that was the problem. I put a small pillow down in front of my door last night, a bed for Callie, and a way to block her from reaching under the door. Zeus got up anyway at 3am. So I tried to stop any late night, hallway meowing by leaving a gap in my door so he could get back in. I knew better. Callie spent the next ten minutes trying to lay down on the pillows at my head so she went back out in the hall and I shut the door. Zeus hollers a few minutes later and thought he was going to make it outside. I decided against it, put him back on my bed and went back to bed. But I didn't sleep. I swear they have a conspiracy out against me.

I realized this weekend how lacking my "Books I've Read" list is. Belle came in with an abridged version of Great Expectations, a book I've never read but have intended to. She finished it last night and mentioned how much she liked it so I guess I'll be making a trip to the library in the near future to borrow a few things. If I can ever mark a few things off my to-do-list.

In a moment of quiet this morning, the alarm went off and a short time later, Belle came in. And climbed into my bed. Then Brady came in and climbed in on the other side of the bed. Then they both started to giggle since neither one of them could be still and Callie kept pouncing their feet. It was a rare moment that is few and far between. No arguing. Just pure laughter. Then they almost missed the bus.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Sunday night I slept. Hard. I didn't hear a thing going on around me until the alarm clock went off on Monday morning wanting me to put the kids on the bus. I got to talking to Hubby about Zeus. He was still asleep on the bed with us Monday morning which has been odd for him over the last few weeks. I assumed that Zeus stayed there all night only for Hubby to tell me he did get up and he meow at the door. Hubby even fussed at him to hush a couple of times. I never heard any of it. Then Hubby mentioned that Callie was reaching under the door when Zeus got up. So I got to thinking. Zeus never got up before Callie realized she could reach under my door. Maybe it was Callie playing under the door that got his attention and made him want to get out of the room.

Last night, Zeus got up again, around 2am. I could hear Callie playing under the door. So I let Zeus out of the room, only for him to complain five minutes later that he wanted outside. Now I've got to figure out how to keep Callie from playing underneath the door and to see if Zeus will stay in bed again. Wouldn't that be nice?

Monday, January 12, 2009

Hubby didn't get home until Saturday evening, so I spent seven hours at a school with three-four kids watching basketball games. How do I end up with three to four kids? One of our neighbor's children played the game immediately after Belle's first game and asked if she could stay with us and watch Belle play. So she stayed over half the day with me for all the fun. Needless to say, my backside was sore when I got home. I'll spare you the details of the games except for the fact a question that is game related. Did you know that girls teams do not commit fouls during the entire course of a day? No? It was news to us, too. Especially by the sound of my voice (and other parents) when I finally got to call it a day. I was hoarse.

Sunday was uneventful. I fixed pancakes for breakfast (amazing for this house) and we just kinda vegged most of the day. Sometime during the day, I turned around to see something along the lines of this:Brady was unconsciously rubbing his hand over the back of Hubby's head feeling of the stubble while Hubby played Wii for Brady. A few minutes later, I captured this picture: Here Hubby was playing a game on the gameboy for Brady that he was struggling with. Both of them were just enamored by this little electronic box.

We watched football yesterday as well. Growing up, my family didn't watch football unless I went to the high school game on Friday with the band. Even then I didn't actually watch the game. A few years ago, a group that I was involved with started doing NFL picks. And I joined in just to join. Then I started watching. And I started cheering. Now I am beside myself when the Titans play the Colts because I have to choose. But I can't choose because I love them both. I mean the Titans were the team I fell for when I first got involved because they're the "home team" for where I am. And they were good that year. They were decent this year. But then I started cheering for the Colts. And watching Peyton play. And now I'm a Colts fan as well. But both of them have lost in the playoffs and I'm left to find someone to cheer. It's not going to be the same. They're not my team.

Today, I sent the kids to school with spaghettios and mac and cheese in their lunches at their request. Belle and Bryce had ball practice after school. When I got there to pick them up, their teams were scrimmaging. I loved it when I watched Belle run one of the plays where she turned around and set a strong pick on her brother. It was one of those moves I would've loved to do to my brother when I played. Unfortunately, Belle complained about a sore throat yesterday and this afternoon she complained about an upset tummy. My fear is that she's coming down with something. Last year, she missed the tournament game at the end of the season because she had the flu. So this evening I picked up a couple of cans of oj to hopefully ward off any sickness with vitamin c. Hopefully it will work since she plays three games this weekend. One scheduled game and two other exhibition games raising money for another school in the county. Six games on one Saturday. It's going to be a busy day.

I got a link to this video today and loaded it up to see.

Hubby asked me if it was the Wonder Years or Life Goes On. So I told him no, it was the Doogie Howser theme and had him get up to watch the video. He shook his head as he watched it. A short time later, I caught him whistling the tune while packing to leave. Then he fussed at me for getting it stuck in his head. I do what I can. Wouldn't you?

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Over the last few weeks, Belle's teammates have been wearing crazy socks for their games. Each week brought a new girl joining in the trend. After last Saturday's game, Belle picked out two pair of crazy socks to wear to her games and wore her first pair today. It's a contagious trend. Other girls teams have also started wearing them. I wish I knew what they were thinking.

Thursday, January 8, 2009

I'm sitting here right now watching all 5 animals harass each other. Gracie is chasing Callie around the love seat. Zeus gets in the middle of it to stop Gracie. Sophie and Cheech jump on Zeus to keep him away from Gracie. I wish my kids would stand up for each other like that at times.

Tomorrow I have no running to do for the kids. We have no basketball practices, no strings rehearsals, no concerts and no games. I get to let the kids get off the bus, feed them a snack and some supper. I could have a family movie night, a family game night or Wii night and I don't have to worry about where I have to be or what time do I have to be there. The night is all ours. Or mine if I choose.

Today I got Brady and Bryce from ball practice. I fixed a quick supper, gave them fast showers before throwing them in the car and racing across town for their strings Christmas concert. They get there 45 minutes before concert time to warm up for a 30 minute concert. Both the beginning and advanced strings performances lasted thirty minutes. Then I came home, they had a snack and went to bed.

I'm struggling. I'm not struggling with the on the go running. I honestly think I live for watching them do the things they do. Watching them brings tears to my eyes. I'm struggling with other things. I'm fighting with feelings I don't know how to explain. Fighting with a lack of energy to do anything. Struggling with faith. Struggling with health. I got a clean bill of health (as much as I could) in November only to feel like my body is falling apart now. I have so many things in my day to day life I want to change that I don't even know where to start.

So I sleep. I sleep off and on during the night to get up and want to sleep as soon as the kids get on the bus. I sit down in the afternoons and my eyes want to close. Same thing at supper. It's like my rump in a chair is attached to my eyelids closing. And if I'm not sleeping, I'm reading blogs, checking my facebook account or playing Yahtzee on pogo. So much for change. Today I accomplished the most I think I have all week. Three loads of laundry. Folded three loads of laundry. Hemmed Belle's pants so she could wear them tonight. Ironed those pants plus her shirt and Bryce's shirt and pants for tonight's concert. I showered and washed my hair. I dried it. I put on more makeup than I have all week. Tomorrow, my intentions are to put the kids on the bus and take my shower so that I can go grocery shopping. Then I'll come home and hope to have enough energy to accomplish something. But those plans are up for change. Especially if I don't sleep well tonight.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

It amazes me how young kids are when they start picking on each other about how they "like" someone or that someone "likes" them. We went through it with Bryce when a little girl in his class fell for him. Belle is the one that gets defensive and cries if you ask her about who she likes or if someone tells her that so and so likes her. Brady wears his feelings on his sleeve. He has fallen for a little girl that he's known the past couple of years. His feelings really progressed when her cousin moved into the house next door and she would be there while they were moving in or visiting. Just before Christmas, he decided he wanted to give her a ring. While I didn't discourage it, but I didn't encourage it either. I just hoped it would go away on it's own. When he got his rock polishing kit for Christmas, he figured he had hit the jackpot. Not only did it come with the rocks, the tumbler and the essential "tools" for the job, but it also came with earring settings, key chains and a couple of ring settings. He knew right away that he was going to make her a ring with his kit. After listening to that polisher run for days on end, Hubby declared that his rocks were finished. Brady picked out the perfect stone and glued it to the ring.He has been waiting, a little impatiently I think, for tomorrow. Tomorrow is her birthday and the day he plans to leave it sitting on her desk. My little sweetheart.

Unfortunately, what Brady doesn't know is that her dad has taken a job in another part of the state. She will be moving with her mother and brother at the end of the school year to join him. We haven't told him (we just found out this weekend) because I'm not real sure the girl knows herself.

Would you tell him (assuming she knows about the move) or would you wait and let him find out from her?

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

I sit here and wonder what have I got to say that is blog-worthy today. I think that nothing has really happened today. Of course, I had a typical day with the kids and there is always those sweet moments that happen. A big hug from Brady because he woke up in a good mood. Working peacefully with Belle to complete her homework. Seeing the excitement on Bryce's face because a new friend gave him a call. We didn't get any more ice last night and what we did have melted when everything changed over to rain before sunrise so the kids went to school today which is always a good thing. According to the schools website, they will already be completing school two days later this year than scheduled because of ice and Ike.

I was going about my normal day when I received a call from the fill-in nurse at the kids school. Brady was "hearing bells" behind his right ear. She asked him if it was hurting, to which he answered no but she felt I needed to know about the complaint. Nothing was said about it when he got home this afternoon so I assume it is no longer ringing.

All three kids had some sort of practice today. Brady had basketball practice and Belle had strings rehearsal immediately after school. Bryce had to be back at the school at 5:30 for basketball practice. I dropped him off, brought Brady and Belle back for showers (Belle for homework) and went back to the school for the end of practice. Now they are all in bed for the night, hopefully sleeping for another busy day tomorrow.

What are the odds that all three kids have all four games at the same school this weekend? I don't know either but words can't describe the relief I felt when Brady's coaches let me know that his game is at the same school as Belle and Bryce's games. Not only are they at the same school, but they are at a school 15 minutes from home. Not bad.

I've noticed lately that I'm having a hard time focusing on what I'm discussing. I'm not sure what has caused this but if I've talked to you lately and this has happened my apologies. I'm working on focusing. Hopefully tomorrow I will do better.

Monday, January 5, 2009

The kids had a successful first day back. The boys came home with homework, sat down and finished it as they walked through the door. Belle had basketball practice after school and no homework except to read. They each said they had a good day and was excited to be able to see their friends again. Because they are still making up days from the ice storm in December, the first semester doesn't actually end until later this week allowing them extra time to meet reading goals and such. Hopefully report cards will come in on Friday.

Speaking of ice, it has been coming down again this afternoon and parts of my yard have now got a fine layer over it. The road, driveway and sidewalks are a teeny bit slick. Things that can be moved such as Hubby's pickup and the kids trampoline are covered with ice. While it isn't doing anything now, only time will tell if the kids will be out of school tomorrow. Unfortunately, the forecast has been up and down all day to the extent of what we will see. At first, it was just rain. Then we were placed under a winter weather advisory that expired at 6 only to be reinstated at 6:30. Next, we were to get freezing rain part of the evening and night for the temperatures to climb above freezing to rain. Now they are saying that we could have freezing rain and sleet all night to change over to rain sometime tomorrow. I hate the waiting game involved. I hate the fact that I will wake tomorrow morning at 5:30 only to watch the news and see if schools are in session. Because I wake up so early, they will be in and I will have to get up and get them ready when all I want to do is sleep.

Hubby and I are at odds when it comes to the temperatures in the house. If he is hot, I'm freezing. Last Thursday and Friday, the temps were up in the 60's here. That means by bedtime, the house is a little warm unless we have opened a couple of windows. The heat was still on in the house because evenings were getting down into the 40's. Hubby was complaining about being stuffy Thursday night after we had gone to bed so we opened the window over our bed. Minutes later, I heard a noise and lifted my head.

"What?" asked Hubby.

"I heard something." Either he didn't hear me or he didn't hear the same thing I heard because he didn't respond. So I laid back down on my pillow while my mind wandered about the guy standing outside our window with a gun because I'm funny that way. A few minutes later, I heard the noise again. This time I sat up in bed and turned on the light. Hubby looked up at me and asked the same question.

"I heard it again." Then I heard it again. This time I looked in the direction of the noise to find Callie's paws reaching under our door playing with a ring seal off a gallon of milk. Callie is playing under our door and I just knew it was someone with a gun peeking through our window. And that is why I don't sleep with the windows open when Hubby isn't home.

Sunday, January 4, 2009

I finally got Brady's picture with Santa scanned so that I could share it. Bryce and Belle decided that they didn't want their pictures taken this year. Brady had just had his hair cut five minutes before this was taken so you can actually see those beautiful eyes. Also, my parents bought this cabinet for me for Christmas a few years ago. It's been sitting on my dresser for the last five years (since we bought the house) waiting for Hubby to put it up. He finally did so this weekend. Notice the thick layer of dust on the glass shelf. My reasoning was since it was not being used, why should it be cleaned? Now I just have to rid it of the inch of dust before I start using it.

Our New Years eve was uneventful. So uneventful that kids went to bed around their regular bedtime because they were tired. Bryce was especially tired since he had practiced ball for two hours that afternoon. Hubby and I had turned off the tv and retired for the night by 11:30. Full of excitement we are.

Saturday, we had to be at my former elementary school at 8:30 for the first of four basketball games at three different schools. Someone in the athletic administration decided for one reason or another that the kids could play eight games in seven weeks so each team will be playing two games in one day at some point this month. Bryce started us off with a game at 9 at one school and then another game at 2:50 at a different school. Brady played at noon at the first school while Belle played her game at 2:50 at a third school. Since we had already gotten to see Bryce play first thing on Saturday, Mom and Dad took him to his second game while we escorted Belle to hers. Both boys won their games while Belle's team put up a really good fight. Next week, she will play two games in one day, both at the same school. Bryce's game will be at that same school as well and I'm waiting until Tuesday to find out when and where Brady's game is. I can only hope that it's not overlapping one of the other games.

My neighbor called me just as we were walking out of Belle's game Saturday and asked if I could babysit for her while she and her hubby attended a benefit concert. The sitter she had lined up didn't work out so I to her to bring him over. In order to have the house ready for a crawling one, Hubby went to work and stored all of our Christmas bins in the attic to get them out of the living room. Can't say he hasn't been working on his honey-do-list since coming home Wednesday. The baby was great. He played his heart out, ate a bit of supper with us and then went to sleep about a half hour before he was picked up.

The kids head back to school tomorrow and I can only say not a moment too soon. You know when they are ready for their usual structured lives when they start arguing at 7am over something trivial. And? They have been averaging going through a gallon of milk per day! Tonight I made sure that they were ready to go. Clothes have been packed for an after school practice, backpacks are ready for the bus in the morning, their outfits have been decided and I personally have sharpened an entire package of pencils so that they each have pencils to start the year with. Now if they could only keep up with them.

Are you ready to get back into the grind now that the new year is here?

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About Me

I am ShortyMom. I have been married to the love of my life for 19 years now and we have three kids. Shane is 18, Krista is 17 and Ty is 15. We also have 9 fur kids. Gracie, our 8 year "mostly" dachshund, Daisy, a stray that adopted us, George and Teddy 2 year old mix and Ernie, 1 year old mix. Callie is our 9 year old tabby cat. Our persians are Abi who is 6, and Sebastian and Ginger are 4. I love playing and listening to music, a good book that you can't put down and a really good movie. I love taking pictures, crocheting, cross-stitching and digital artwork. Currently I am wife, mother, chef, chauffeur, and referee. I am addicted to Diet Sundrop, Sudoku and blogs.